In the Midst of Danger
by stargazer313
Summary: set during poison study, altrenate ending. what if Valek and Yelena were to go on a mission. together. alone. to brazelle's manor. Valek and Yelena fluff and action/adventure.
1. Chapter 1

**AN: This is my first fanfic, so don't kill me if it's horrible Xo . I think its pretty good personally. :- ) , I might be one of the only American authors on this sight, so please excuse my "improper" grammar/spelling. The next chapter should be up in the next day or so because I have a lot of it planned out. Hope you enjoy!**

**Dedication: this story is dedicated to Chase Lowry who died on Tuesday. We loved you Chase and we miss you.**

Chapter 1

-Valek's POV-

A mission. With Yelena. Alone. Wonderful. I still couldn't believe that the Commander had authorized it.

_**flashback **_

_Yelena and I had just walked into the Commander's war room._

"_Valek, you are late, as usual," he said with an annoyed look on his face. _

_I mumbled my apologies under my breath. Yelena tasted his meal, roast beef, mashed potatoes, and some kind of squash puree, and I took my seat. _

"_Valek, I have a mission for you," he stated rather unceremoniously. No beating around the bush with him. "I know you have had your suspicions about Brazelle's orphanage for a while now, and I want you to go find out whether they were valid or simply you being paranoid," he said with a pointed look at me. _

"_If I weren't paranoid, neither you nor I would be alive," I retorted. _

_Yelena was stalling. She was taking much too long to taste the commanders iced tea, no one needs to take two minutes to taste a mouthful of liquid, and I could tell she was listening intently. Her face drained of color when the Commander mentioned Brazelle. The Commander followed my gaze and looked thoughtfully at Yelena. _

"_I want you to take Yelena with you on this mission." Yelena spit out the mouthful of thoroughly-tasted iced tea in shock, which would have been extremely comical if my surprise didn't mirror her own. I nearly choked on my bite of beef. After our simultaneous coughing fit was over, the protests started. _

"_Are you sure that's the best-"_

"_I don't think that's-"_

"_Who would taste your food?"_

"_She's just a food taster, how can you trust her-"_

_The Commander just looked at us with an amused expression. _

"_Yes, I'm sure it's a good idea, I can have one of the other advisors trained in poison tasting test my food, and you said yourself you trust her. I can trust you, and you trust her, therefore, I trust her. The important part is that she knows her way around Brazelle's manor better than you do and she will be a useful asset to the mission. You leave tomorrow"_

_He said this with such finality in his face and voice that we had no choice but to comply._

_**End Flashback**_

We had been jogging through the forest for about five hours now and I had hardly even broken a sweat. Yelena on the other hand… I knew she would never admit defeat even if it was in the form of stopping or slowing down. I glanced over at her. The emerald of her eyes was brought out by the several hues of green in the forest. Even in her fatigue, she moved with graceful, fluid movements. She seemed so at home in the forest. So beautiful… _No! Stop it Valek! _ I don't have time to think about that right now. I _cannot_ even think about this while she's in such close proximity. I might do something I will regret… or not…

-Yelena's POV-

Now Valek was getting kind of creepy. He kept glancing over at me as if appraising me or something. Not that I didn't like his attention…

Every part of me was aching and my throat was burning. _Finally _he stopped.

"We'll make camp here tonight," he stated. I guess he's not one to socialize.

**AN: Please, please, please, please, please, please review! Feedback is my intellectual food and I am starving!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own any of these characters (yet) and there are no rights reserved to me whatsoever. If they were, I would be getting a massage from Valek while typing on a computer not from the dark ages.**


	2. Chapter 2

**AN: Hey! You get 2 chapters to start you out! Lucky you! I promise this will have more action in it than the last. That was mostly just a setup for the plot so… ya. Thank you kAaAarl for telling me about that plot hole and I appreciate your concern about my friend. I updated chapter 1 so that the commander explains why Yelena is going along on the mission. She knows her way around Brazelle's manor better than Valek and therefore has a reason to go. Its kind of a flimsy one, but hey, I needed to get them together **_**somehow**_**. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own any characters in this story except for the soldiers. All rights reserved to the AMAZING Maria V. Snyder.**

Chapter 2

-Yelena's POV-

Valek had been quiet the whole way there and the half hour that we had been camped. Finally I couldn't stand it any more. I had to _do something._ I was never good at sitting still and being quiet. May and Cara had always gotten annoyed with me because I was constantly bouncing up and down in my seat. You would think I would be the one to tell them to pipe down, considering I was their parental figure in every other aspect of their lives, but, hey, we all have our quirks.

"Valek, what can I do to help. I can't stand this silent idleness. Its oppressive." He turned as if my voice had startled him. Do master assassins get startled? I guess he was deep in thought.

"Go fill up our canteens by the river. It should be about a quarter mile west of here. On your way, pick up any fire wood you find. We'll need a lot to last us through the night," he said lacking any animation. Friendly. We seemed to have lost all our companionable ease that we had developed at the castle. I was suffocating from thickness of the tension that was in the air. I was glad to leave camp.

I picked up stray twigs on the way to the river, which was right where Valek said it would be. I wondered if he had been through this area many times, because he seemed to know it very well. The Commander had mentioned him having suspicions about Brazelle. How much did he know?

I pushed those thoughts away as I approached the river. I filled Valek's military-order canteen and my water bag with the cool water. The water was clear and clean and beckoned to my sweating and battered body. I wanted nothing more then to jump in and submerge myself, hidden from the world and my problems. But what if Valek decides to come looking for me and I'm… My cheeks darkened fiercely at the thought. Whatever I felt for Valek, I didn't even know what it was, I was sure that he did not feel the same way. He made that clear today with his entirely uncaring attitude towards me. Plus, I will never let another man take advantage of me the way Reyad had.

The snap of a twig pulled me out of my reverie. I sensed someone lurking in the shadows of the trees behind me. An hour had passed since I had left and dusk was upon us. Instead of the cool shelter that the trees had been in the day, they looked like menacing creatures looming over me. A shadow detached its self from the mass and I slowly stood up. The shadow took the form of a man with a rather large sword. He was tall and muscular, about the same size as Ari. He had curly brown hair, the color of dirt, and a grubby beard to match. His almost-black eyes shone with hatred and amusement.

"Well, well, well, what have we got here?" he said in a voice that revolted my very being.

"Who are you?" I asked in what I hoped was a voice that was stronger than my knees. Why would there be a soldier roaming around in the woods of MD-5? I could tell he was a soldier based on the amount of weapons he carried and the fact that he was wearing MD-5's soldier uniform. Of course, uniforms could be misleading, as Valek had taught me.

"I think the more important question is who you are," he answered in a relaxed and slightly amused tone.

Summoning all the courage and defiance I had, I said, "The girl who's about to kick your ass." I took on an offensive battle stance. Damn it I had forgotten my bow at camp! I was kicking myself for that now.

He hooted with laughter at that as I simply stood and watched him. I eyed a nice long stick to my right that could be used as a bow. It wasn't perfect, but it would do. I started inching towards it while he was distracted with laughing at my apparently comical performance. Suddenly he stopped.

"What makes you think that you could take me in a fight? Of course I also have some back up…" he said while motioning to what appeared to be the empty trees. Suddenly, fifteen or twenty men jumped out from behind the trees, each equally as well armed and muscular as their leader. Crap.

"Well this was fun and all, but I'm afraid I don't have time for this. I have bigger fish to fry," he said nonchalantly. "Take her." He motioned for the other soldiers to advance.

I took a deep breath and summoned my zone of concentration. Then, I attacked.

The first guard that reached me got a knee to the groin and a foot to the temple. I jumped off the doubled over form of the first one to launch a flying kick at the one behind him. One by one, they fell with a well-placed punch or kick. I felt like I was flying. My heart fell when they kept coming. I had already dispatched eight or nine guards, but I was already running out of energy and adrenaline. I finally made it to where the make-shift bow was and grasped it triumphantly. With the aid of a bow, I was more effective. But when I tried to straighten up and return to the battle, I felt a very heavy object hit me very hard in the back of my head. As I blacked out, I heard the slimy laughter of the man with the grubby beard as he stood over my prone body.

-Valek's POV-

_Where was she?_ I frantically paced back and forth through camp. I had to hold myself back from destroying the camp out of frustration. She had been gone for almost three hours. _Where could she be! _How could I have let her out of my sight! We were here to investigate foul play, of course there would be danger here! I kicked my self for the billionth time in the past hour or so. What if she was attacked? What if she was killed? I couldn't bear the thought of living without her. How had she affected me so deeply in such a short amount of time? Ugh! Now was _not_ the time to investigate my feelings for her, now was the time to go and find her.

I grabbed all my hidden weapons and prepared to go search for her. A prickle went up my spine and I tensed. Years of constant vigilance had given me an automatic sixth sense for detecting danger. Someone was in the woods right behind me. I was too preoccupied with Yelena to watch for intruders. My distraction with Yelena was interfering far too much with my work.

Turning quickly, I flung one of my hidden knives in the direction that I thought the intruder was. I watched as the knife flew to its mark and heard a satisfying thump as a body hit the ground. I heard someone clapping and a man stepped out from the shadows giving me mock-applause.

"I guess the rumors are true about the incredible Valek. Hitting a man from fifty yards away is some feat, especially in the dark" the man said sarcastically. His voice was harsh and made my skin crawl.

"Well, enough small talk," at this he motioned and about ten men came out of the woods. "You are going to have to come with us. Brazelle is expecting you."

How did Brazelle know about this? This was supposed to be a recon mission! He must have a plant in the castle that saw me leaving. Shit, now I had to weed the spy out and _dispose _of him. It never ends. I guess I had to get out of this first.

"What makes you think that I will go with you?" I asked incredulously. Was he really that cocky that he thought that he could take me?

His hideous bearded face broke out into an evil grin. He chuckled and motioned to what were apparently more soldiers. Two more came out from the shadows carrying a struggling figure between him.

"No," was all I was able to choke out as I recognized the bound, gagged, and bruised figure as Yelena

**AN: Oooooooooo a cliff hanger! 8P. haha guess you'll just have to wait! The updates should be pretty quick because I have the next few chapters planned out in my head. I actually thought of this scenario while reading **_**Poison Study. **_**Anyways, review review review!**


	3. Chapter 3

**AN: I'm baaack! Haha I no it's been a SUPER long time since I've updated, BUT I HAVE EXCUSES! I had pe for 5 hours every morning (summer school sucks) then I had water polo for 2 hours after that every day plus three games every Friday. THEN I went to camp for a week, THEN I had to work on my stupid honors summer assignments. THEN my computer kept turning off randomly erasing all my work on this. Ya. Add eating sleeping and my obsession of reading Lily/James Harry Potter fanfics (tehe), I just didn't have time for updating! Basically, I'm lazy. But this LONG chapter should make up for it. 7 frikin pages people! Anyhoo, GIGANTIC thankyou to everyone who reviewed: SaphireBlueEyes, KaAaArl, Just-Acting-Naturally, ConnorTemple4evaneva, mangagirlworshipsNarutomanga, StudyChick, AssassinAuthor, and Kearthable. **

_"No," was all I was able to choke out as I recognized the bound, gagged, and bruised figure as Yelena._

Her hair was tangled with bits of twigs and leaves stuck in it and her face and arms were bruised. There was a wound on her temple that was dripping blood slowly down the side of her face.

The look in her eyes, however, was anything but subdued. There was a sort of fierce indignity and just a hint of rage. She did not give in without a fight, that was for sure.

The thought of these men hurting her made my blood boil, but I knew there was nothing I could do while she was in their captivity. He was right. At that moment, I was painfully aware of the fact that I would concede to their every wish as long as Yelena was held.

_Damn it._

"You see if you don't cooperate, the girl gets hurt," the bearded man said with malicious glee.

"I don't know this woman. Where did you find her?" I asked nonchalantly. I hoped beyond hope that if he sees that he can't use her against me, he would let her go. I know it was far fetched, but I was desperate.

I snuck a glance at a very confused Yelena, and, as I watched,` comprehension crossed her face so quickly it might have not even been there before her unemotional mask slipped onto her gagged face.

The bearded man watched me intently as if trying to illicit the merit of my story from me just by staring at me. Ha! That was my trick! He didn't have that assassin glare that I had perfected over the years. I simply stared back as if daring him to question me.

"But she's wearing a food taster's uniform," he pointed out with a satisfied smirk.

" Probably stole it. Or made it herself. My guess is she's just a common thief come to get what riches she could from Castletown **(That was what that town was called right? I'm going off of memory here)**. No one of importance to me," I lied quickly.

He stared at me a few minutes more and then sighed.

"Fine. If you _insist_ that you don't know her, I suppose we have no use for her."

To my horror, instead of letting her go, in one liquid motion, he pulled out a dagger and was about to slit her throat.

" NO!" I cried. At that moment of frozen terror, when I thought that I had lost Yelena forever, I realized just how deeply I cared for her. Real convenient: I realized that I couldn't live without her as soon as I realized how easily I could lose her. The universe loves me, doesn't it?

Upon hearing my outburst, the blade stopped just short of her windpipe, the cool tip of the steal weapon digging into the supple skin of Yelena's neck drawing a small bead of blood.

She was breathing heavily behind her gag, her eyes wide in terror, but she was alive.

"Just… don't hurt her," I said as I let out the breath I didn't realize I had been holding all in one huff.

He gestured to his men sensing that I would put up no fight and two goons held my hands behind my back, while two others poked their swords into my back warning me to not cause trouble.

The man scrutinized my face and started laughing uncontrollably. Had this man gone mad? I was seriously considering the prospect when he spoke again wiping tears from his eyes.

"You, the _great_ Valek, is in love! With a lowly food-taster no less! What a laugh!" He resumed his cackling, unaware of my rage and my embarrassment. He had hit it right on the head.

I felt Yelena's eyes burning a hole in my head, but I refused to look at her. I knew what I would find in her beautiful emerald eyes: shock and disgust. How could she ever think of me loving her as a good thing? I was a master assassin; no one falls in love with a killer.

The man walked over to Yelena and tore off her gag.

"I can understand your favor for her. She's definitely pretty enough…" he said stroking her cheek possessively and appraising her as if she was a horse to be bought.

"And she's feisty, has some spirit. More trouble than she's worth, really," he said with a frown on his face.

Yelena's face turned from disgusted and indignant from being touched to proud and defiant. I glanced at the other goons assembled and noticed several arms in slings and many bruised up faces. Her training must have been progressing well.

"put up a nasty fight, the bitch did," he continued. I growled when he referred to Yelena as a bitch. She was anything but.

"Took down half my men before reaching for her weapon. Of course, she was no match for me." He sniffed haughtily.

Yelena looked indignant as heat rose to her face creating little pools of fire on her cheeks.

"No match for you? No _match _for you! You didn't even fight me, you cowardly bastard! You knocked me out when I was reaching for my weapon! If you were to fight me like a man, I might have some respect for you! All you did was sick your dogs on me and wait for an angle where you're not in danger!" she ranted steadily growing angrier. Her green eyes were bright with the fire that was fuelled by her rage.

The 'cowardly bastard' as Yelena had so kindly put it grew purple in the face and struck Yelena so hard that her and the two men that restrained her were flung to the ground like dirty rags.

I struggled against my restraints wanting to go to Yelena. She looked broken lying on the forest floor unmoving. She stirred and was pulled to her feet by her two disgruntled guards. I could already see a bruise forming on her cheek.

"What do you want from us?" I growled. I was done playing his little games. I didn't want Yelena to get hurt more then she already was.

"Well, as of right now I want your cooperation. We will be setting up camp here and in the morning, I'll escort you to Brazelle Manor. After that, well Brazelle has a… favor to ask you. We are also taking her to the manor, although once we get there, he has _special _plans for her." I didn't like the way he said special and could see Yelena's face pale slightly.

"Bind him up and place a five-man guard on him at all times. If anyone falls asleep, I'll personally see to the punishment, and let me tell you, it won't be pretty," he snarled at his men.

"Search him. Take all the weapons you find." The mindless minions hastened to obey taking my sword and several knives and daggers. Fortunately, their search wasn't very thorough, and I was left with my darts and a few knives. Imbeciles.

"Take the girl to my tent. Make sure she doesn't escape. I have big plans for her tonight," he said with a sickening predatory smile. Yelena's face drained of all color and her mouth opened with horror. Her eyes were wide and I could see disgust and fear in the emerald depths. There was another emotion in her eyes that I knew only too well: the terror of a person whose worst nightmare is coming true.

-Yelena's POV-

No. No, no NO! This can't be happening! No! Not again, I can't live through it again.

I was vaguely aware that I was calling Valek's name, pleading for help while I was being dragged away. He called my name and broke free from the guards that held him and ran towards me but was blocked by a wall of guards. I kept screaming, because at this point, what else was there to be done? I was incapable of coherent thought; my need to escape consumed my mind.

I was dumped unceremoniously on the ground, but I couldn't get up due to my ankles and wrists being bound together. I tried to collect my wits and stay calm taking several deep breaths. I cursed myself for leaving my switch blade in my bag. I didn't figure I'd need it when going to get firewood. Not that I'd be able to get to it to trigger it anyways.

While I was trying to figure out if I could wiggle my wrists out of the leather straps that tied them together, the man with the beady eyes walked in. He stood over me and looked down with a disgusting look in his eyes. He stooped to my level and put his rough, grubby hand behind my neck pulling me to him. My skin revolted at his touch and I found it hard to keep calm.

"Just try to enjoy this. It'll be over soon. Unless, you don't want it to be," he sneered in my ear. The feeling of his disgusting breath on my skin made me shiver in revulsion, although he misunderstood the meaning. He growled a little before smashing his lips against mine. His hands started to wander and I tried to shut it all out.

Suddenly, he stopped touching me. His eyes glazed over and he grunted a little bit. He fell forward and almost crushed me, but stopped mid-fall and was pulled back by an invisible force. He was thrown to the ground, revealing Valek with his signature assassin glare. When he turned to me, his face softened. He knelt down to my level and wiped away a tear that I hadn't realized had fallen.

"Are you alright?" he asked gently. All I could do was mutely nod.

"Let's go. We need to be far away from this place by the time they realize he's dead."

I looked down to see a knife in my tormenter's back, a little pool of blood dripping from his mouth. I shuddered and gladly turned away from the morbid sight.

We snuck silently through the camp, careful not to wake any of the guards. I saw five men lying on the ground with darts in their necks. I looked at Valek questioningly.

"They're still alive. There was sleeping solution in those darts," he explained.

We stole through the forest and I followed Valek blindly until we came to a clearing surrounded by thick trees.

Valek started a small fire while I sat numbly on a rock. The events of the night were still sinking in. It kept replaying in my head, but I couldn't make any sense of them. Valek finally snapped me from my daze when he offered me a cup of some steaming liquid. I took it gratefully and sipped it absently.

I looked up sharply when I heard Valek cough softly.

"Are you ok? I mean… did he… do anything to you?" Valek asked hoarsely.

I would have laughed at his squeamish expression if it weren't for the deep concern that was there, too.

"No, all he did was kissed me." Not as bad as Reyad.

I didn't realize I had spoken my thoughts until Valek's head snapped up and he gave me a sharp look.

"What?"

His bright sapphire gaze bore into my own and I knew that he heard me fine.

In my head I debated telling him about Reyad. He deserved to know. He had saved me from reliving my worst nightmare and from being delivered into the hands of Brazelle. Plus, I had come to trust him. Maybe more then trust…

I took a deep breath and closed my eyes. I wouldn't explore that tonight. I had been through enough without adding rejection on top of it all. But what if he did love me like the man said he did? Did I love him? Fearing the answer to that question, I locked all feelings towards Valek deep inside me and turned back to the task at hand.

I told him everything, starting with being in the orphanage to the horrible night that ended with Reyad dead and me facing the noose. I didn't spare him the details. I didn't sugarcoat anything. He got the whole truth.

The whole time I was talking, Valek didn't move. He simply stared and listened. However, I didn't miss the small changes to his stoic figure that gave him away.

His teeth clenched together strengthening his sculpted jaw line. His hands curled into fists so tight, I could see his knuckles through his pale skin. The muscles in his arms tensed and to the point of shaking. His eyes that I had always thought of as ice and sapphires melted into pools of liquid rage.

When I finished, we sat in silence letting it all sink in. Finally, he spoke.

"The bastard didn't deserve the quick death you gave him. Yet, you were the one convicted of a crime." His voice shook and he took a steadying breath and closed his eyes. When he opened them he sought mine.

"Yelena, why are you crying?"

I didn't notice the tears streaking down my face until he spoke.

I closed my eyes willing the traitorous tears to stop, and he gently moved closer to me, wiping my fallen tears with a thumb calloused from sculpting. When I opened my eyes, I was startled to find him mere inches away from me. All the feelings that I had stifled came flooding back with full force. My breathing hitched when I looked into his eyes, but I couldn't look away.

Unconsciously, we both leaned in. His lips brushed mine ever so gently and he slowly pulled away. Our eyes still closed, we sat in silence

"Are you afraid of me?" he asked in a low voice.

"N-no. I mean yes. I know I should be, but I just feel… safe. Not in danger." I couldn't explain it, but I felt safer with an assassin then I did with a battalion of guards.

Satisfied with my answer, he captured my lips again. Something about the feeling of his lips on mine unlocked the safe in my soul where all the feelings of love and safety resided. The thought hit me like an anvil. I loved him. I gasped into our kiss and he pulled away looking concerned.

I stared at him taking in his chiseled features. His face had softened and his eyes had melted.

Still in awe of my revelation, I whispered, "I love you Valek."

He looked so shocked that I looked away and started to stand up. Of course he wouldn't love me. I'm nothing. I was about to bolt when I felt his hand close around my wrist pulling me back to the ground. He took my chin in his hand forcing me to look at him.

"Yelena, my love has been yours ever since the fire festival."

He bent down and reclaimed my lips. The proclamation of our mutual love opened the flood gates, releasing all the suppressed longing and passion of the past months. His arm wrapped around my waist pulling me to him until I was flush against his chest. All my injuries, both physically and mentally were forgotten as his hands tangled in my hair and mine clasped behind his neck.

After an undeterminable amount of time, he pulled away, both of us gasping for breath, and he pulled me down to his bed roll **(get** **your mind out of the gutter people. NOTHING HAPPENED!)**. I snuggled in his arms and sighed as he stroked my hair, lulling me into a deep sleep.

**AN: Phew! That took awhile. Sorry about the monster an at the beginning. The big plot will pick up next chapter at Brazelle's Manor (AssassinAuthor). Just wanted to get this one out of the way. I wasn't quite happy with this chapter, so I need a beta. Anyone interested? Oh ya, and, REVIEW! **

**Disclaimer: not mine. Nothing. Otherwise I'd have a computer that didn't crash every 5 minutes.**


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